toast
1 Americannoun
verb (used with object)
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to brown, as bread or cheese, by exposure to heat.
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to heat or warm thoroughly at a fire.
She toasted her feet at the fireplace.
verb (used without object)
idioms
noun
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a salutation or a few words of congratulation, good wishes, appreciation, remembrance, etc., uttered immediately before drinking to a person, event, etc.
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a person, event, sentiment, or the like, in honor of whom another or others raise their glasses in salutation and then drink.
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an act or instance of thus drinking.
They drank a toast to the queen.
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a call on another or others to drink to some person or thing.
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a person who is celebrated as with the spirited homage of a toast.
She was the toast of five continents.
verb (used with object)
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to drink to the health of or in honor of; propose a toast to or in honor of.
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to propose as a toast.
verb (used without object)
noun
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a tribute or proposal of health, success, etc, given to a person or thing by a company of people and marked by raising glasses and drinking together
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a person or thing honoured by such a tribute or proposal
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(esp formerly) an attractive woman to whom such tributes are frequently made
she was the toast of the town
verb
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to propose or drink a toast to (a person or thing)
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(intr) to add vocal effects to a prerecorded track: a disc-jockey technique See also rap 1
noun
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sliced bread browned by exposure to heat, usually under a grill, over a fire, or in a toaster
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informal to face certain destruction or defeat
verb
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(tr) to brown under a grill or over a fire
to toast cheese
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to warm or be warmed in a similar manner
to toast one's hands by the fire
Other Word Forms
- toaster noun
Etymology
Origin of toast1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English verb tosten, from Old French toster, from Vulgar Latin tostāre (unattested), derivative of Latin tostus (from unattested torstos ), past participle of torrēre “to parch, roast”, akin to Gothic thaursus, Old Norse thurr “dry”; noun derivative of the verb; torrid; thirst ( def. )
Origin of toast2
First recorded in 1690–1700; figurative use of toast 1 (noun); the name of a lady so honored was said to give flavor to the drink comparable to that given by spiced toast
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It was an immediate issue for Labour MSPs as they gathered for their conference in Paisley, and for Scottish Greens toasting the success of their southern sister party.
From BBC
Men in long frock coats and women in iridescent shot silk raised toasts.
From Literature
There might be an impromptu celebration including Snow Delights of different flavors, all raised in a toast to Duane’s accomplishment.
From Literature
The dried herbs toast just enough to release their oils, turning the air warm and aromatic.
From Salon
From coastal Jableh, her paternal family’s home, she recalls the aromas of “flavored hookah smoke, nuts toasting on carts, and boiled sweet corn.”
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
